5 Places To Find Your Mentors (Hint: It's not just about networking events.)
The word "mentor" comes from the ancient Greek term for a teacher and guide. Mentors can show you the ropes, give you advice on your career path or help you get started in an industry. Whether you’re looking to start your own business, make a change in your current job or just get some helpful feedback with your work, it's important to find mentors that will support you. A mentor-mentee relationship can be an amazing tool for professional development — it can lead to a new role, a promotion, or even raise. In this blog post, we'll discuss places where you might be able to find mentors for your professional development needs! Here is a list of five great options:
1.) At School
If your college has a mentorship program, this is a good place to start since mentors in these programs are open to taking on mentees. Many colleges have programs that match students with professionals who would like to mentor. These are a great way for potential mentors and mentees to find each other! Similarly, if you’re part of an alumni association from your undergraduate or graduate school, you can look there as well. Don’t stop there though; no one mentor can help you achieve all of your goals, so cast a wide net.
2.) In The Workplace
The workplace is probably the most common place to meet a mentor. Some companies offer mentorship programs as well, but if not, the best way to grow a relationship with a potential mentor is by asking them to grab coffee. If you’re in the same department, you can use your shared projects as a starting point. If you’re in different departments, you can explain why you think their skillset is valuable and what you’d like to learn from them.
3.) Online Communities
Social media has completely changed the game when it comes to meeting mentors. From Facebook to Linkedin to Meetup, there are countless groups of like-minded professionals meeting online. Due to the informal nature of mentoring, it’s quite common to reach out via direct message. There are also incredible online communities for different niches that can help you find different approaches to new challenges and grow professionally.
4.) Professional Organizations
Becoming a member of or attending local networking events (e.g. Chamber of Commerce, Library Talks) can help establish connections with potential mentors. When it comes to looking for mentors, it’s important to think not only of your company’s industry but the industry of your job function. For example, if you’re the Marketing Manager of a Hospitality Group, you should search for mentors within Marketing instead of just Hospitality. Find people with 1-2 steps ahead of you in positions you want. VP or Director. It doesn’t always have to be a C suite leader.
5.) Ask your network if they have connections
When reaching out to your network, we recommend that you personalize emails to people who you think might be able to help you find a mentor in a specific way. This outreach should be short and sweet. Don't be afraid of being straightforward when it comes to suggesting introductions or mentor leads at a particular company. Always keep it classy by offering to return the favor.
It's important for you to find mentors who can help guide you in your professional development and offer advice on how to improve. It never hurts to put together a “board of mentors” that can help you in different ways. There are so many places you can look. One of the best options is through an online community like ours. We have plenty of industry professionals in our Good @ Work Club community, and we're always looking for new members so they can share their knowledge with someone else. Join the waitlist today!